Losing Face
by KiWi Rai Rai
Summary: Anime universe. An old face from Meta Knight's past not only puts his life in danger, but inadvertantly leads a threat to Kirby and possibly the rest of Pupu village.
1. Chapter 1

Kiwi: Behold, my first Kirby fanfic. It feels kind of refreshing to get away from Transformers for a while.

Torio: I give up. I just give up.

Kiwi: Now on to other business. I don't really like this one. Alida just irks me.

Torio: She's too much like Silica, that's why.

Kiwi: Yeah, I realized that halfway through the story, when I finally got to the "Sacred Sword Galaxia" episode. (sighs) Oh well. On to the explanations!

Torio: Kiwi needed an original name for Meta Knight. She made one up simply because the name 'Meta' would have shortened this story by at least a page.

Kiwi: I also don't want to hear anything about Alida. I know she's too much like Silica. I know that she doesn't seem honorable despite the fact she talks about it (there is a reason for that) I don't like her. After this story is finished she'll probably never appear in my fanfics again. Also, sorry for errors. I've gone through it, but my spellchecker is broke and I don't know why.

Torio: She also isn't a love interest for Meta Knight. Just to clear that up.

Kiwi: I saw no chemistry in this…

Torio: But someone out there will. I know it.

Kiwi: maybe your right. Anyway, Kirby is the property of Nintendo. I only have the Kutharians.

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Part 1...

Fumu and Bun watched as something streaked across the midnight sky. There was a loud crash as it landed somewhere outside of town.

The two yawned. It was late and they were tired. They would investigate it tomorrow.

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Meta Knight watched the object with a mild unease. He had a bad feeling. He went back into his bed and tried to get some rest, but was too troubled by a feeling of familiarity and memories he didn't care for becoming unearthed.

"_Are you…happy?"_

Memories from a past life rushed though his mind.

"_Take the sword."_

"_And if I don't?"_

"_I'll kill you anyway, though it lacks honor."_

Meta Knight got back up and paced around his room. He had a feeling that tomorrow would not go well.

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The next day, Fumu, Bun and Kirby were traveling to where the object crashed. However, they were met by a traveler coming from the crash site.

She wore a tattered cloak, and the clothes underneath were in no better condition. She had dark green skin, bright purple hair, and vivid yellow eyes. There was a thin scar over her left eye.

"I seek repairs for my ship." she stated.

Bun and Fumu looked at each other. Was there anyone in Pupu village who knew how to repair a ship?

"We can try to help." Fumu said. "But I really don't think anyone can repair a spaceship." She offered her hand to the stranger. "I'm Fumu, by the way." The stranger shook her hand.

"Pleased to meet you, Fumu."

"I'm Bun." Bun stated. He picked up Kirby. "And this is Kirby."

"Kaabii!"

"My name is Alida." The traveler said with a smile.

As they walked back to Pupu village, the kids questioned Alida on her background.

"What planet are you from?" Fumu asked.

"Kuthar." Alida stated simply.

"Never heard of it." Bun said.

"It is fairly far off from here." Alida stated.

"Then why are you here?" Fumu asked.

"I am looking for someone."

Before Fumu could press further, Alida said, "Your village is…quaint. Very tropical."

Fumu smiled. "Yeah, it's always warm here. What's it like on Kuthar?"

"Kuthar is a desert planet."

"Sis, I'm hungry." Bun complained. "Hey, let's go to Kawasaki's! I'm sure he would want to meet Alida!"

Kirby was able to figure out that Kawasaki's equaled food, and was already halfway there before the remaining three began in that direction.

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Meta Knight stood on the tree branch. He checked to make sure his mask was securely in place. He couldn't afford any mistakes. Not with Alida here.

She would probably recognize him anyway. He had to lay low for now, and hope she left soon.

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"Kirby, don't eat all of the food!" Fumu scolded. "I'm sure our guest wants some."

"Poyo?" Kirby asked.

Alida laughed. "Your friend is very energetic."

"So, why are you here?" Bun asked. "Who are you looking for?"

"A mercenary named Mennen." Alida stated.

"A mercenary?" Fumu asked. "Why?"

"To avenge my father."

"Oh." Fumu muttered.

Kirby blinked at her in confusion. Alida chuckled and patted him on the head. "Your warrior is very young. Please tell me he is not your only defense in this village."

"No, we have Sir Meta Knight and…" Fumu paused. "How did you know he was a warrior?"

"I know of his type." Alida replied evenly. "Do you not?"

"No." Fumu and Bun muttered.

"Then I will tell you." Alida said. "You know of the Star Warriors, right?"

"A little." Fumu said. "They fight Nightmare."

"True." Alida told her. "But many of the Star Warriors were once Nightmare's creations."

Bun gasped. "You mean Star Warriors are Demon Beasts!"

"Were." Alida corrected. "They changed. Nightmare can create things, but he can't make them obedient. They must be trained for that." She picked up Kirby and set him on her lap. "Your friend's kind started when Nightmare attempted to make a being that could devour the universe. Needless to say, it did not go as planed. He tried again and again, but each time, his creations turned against him." Alida looked up. "There are variations of the genetic code that are loyal to Nightmare, ones that do not retain the copy ability, but none of Kirby's specific type are loyal to him."

"So, what's his species called?" Fumu asked.

Alida hesitated. "Ah… his kind have no name."

"A species with no name?" Kawasaki asked.

Alida paid him no mind. She was glaring out the window. "We are being watched." She growled. Quickly, she stepped outside. Fumu and Bun followed. Kirby continued eating.

Alida looked around, hands buried under her cloak.

_Does she have weapons down there? _Fumu wondered. _Probably, if she's hunting this mercenary._

A few of the cappies were out, giving Alida strange looks. Sword and Blade were coming towards Fumu.

"Have you seen Sir Meta Knight?" Sword asked. "He has been missing all day."

Fumu thought. "No, I haven't seen him either." she shrugged. "He'll turn up eventually. He always does."

Kirby had finally devoured all of the food that had originally been set out for Alida. He walked outside. He continued walking until he was under the tree and looked up. There was Meta Knight. But Sword and Blade were looking for him, right? So why was he here?

Kirby tilted his head. Maybe… they were playing hide and seek? That would make sense.

"Poyo! Poyo!" Kirby was happy now. He won the game; he found Meta Knight first.

Bun ran over to Kirby and looked up. "He's right here!" He called out.

Meta Knight leapt out of the tree and briskly walked past them. Fumu ran to catch up, sensing something was off.

"Sir Meta Knight?" she asked.

"Not now." He mumbled, trying to keep his voice low. Alida would be sure to recognize it.

The sound of swords being drawn showed the Kutharian _had_ heard.

Alida scowled, brandishing her two swords. "So _this_ is where you've been hiding this whole time, Mennen."

Fumu noticed that Meta Knight made no eye contact. He kept his face down.

"This is a mistake." Fumu pleaded. "Sir Meta Knight is-"

"A liar and a deceiver." Alida said sharply.

Now Sword and Blade stood in front of Alida, hands on the hilts of their weapons.

"Stand down." Meta Knight ordered. They looked from Alida to Meta Knight and back. Slowly they stepped aside.

"This is a mistake." Fumu continued. "Right, Sir Meta Knight?" Meta Knight did not look up. "She's wrong. Tell her she's _wrong_, Sir Meta Knight."

"I do not wish to fight you, Alida." Meta Knight stated.

"Of course you don't" Alida spat. "You're just as much of a coward as ever, Mennen. Tell me, have you even thought of what happened to Kuthar after you helped that usurper gain the throne." Her glare deepened. "Draw your sword."

"And if I don't?"

"I'll kill you anyway."

"That would lack honor."

Alida laughed bitterly. "What would _you_ know of honor?" She sneered.

Meta Knight did not answer.

"Draw your blade or I'll run you through!" Alida screeched. She charged at Meta Knight.

Meta Knight drew his sword at the last possible second, just in time to block. Alida swung again, and Meta Knight leapt out of the way.

Alida swung downwards, and Meta Knight blocked, catching her blades with his.

"Why do you hide behind a mask, Mennen?" Alida asked. "I doubt that you can use your special abilities with it on."

"I no longer use those abilities. I have others." Meta Knight answered.

Meanwhile, Kirby was watching the fight. "Poyo…" He muttered sadly. His new friend and his old friend weren't supposed to fight. It was wrong.

He stood up, deciding he was going to stop the fight.

Alida leapt back, frowning. A straight on approach was not working. She closed her eyes and focused her energy. "Sword Beam!"

Meta Knight dodged the first blast. Then he became aware of a presence behind him.

"Poyo!"

Meta Knight turned forgetting about Alida. "Kirby, get out-" As the second blast hit him, he remembered something. _She has two swords. That means two Sword Beams…_

Fumu ran over to Kirby. "Alida! You could have killed Kirby!"

Alida looked away, obviously caught between guilt at almost killing an innocent and her desire for revenge.

Slowly, Meta Knight stood up, supporting himself on his sword. Alida, went towards him, preparing for the final blow.

"This is too dangerous to continue here." Meta Knight stated.

"It won't be for much longer." Alida growled, raising her swords up.

As she swung her swords down, Meta Knight threw his cape around himself, and vanished. He reappeared a short distance behind her.

"If you want my blood that badly," he told her, "you will have to catch me first." Meta Knight's cape spread, turning into a large set of bat wings. He flew off, out of the town.

Alida ran after him. "Mennen, you coward!"

Tokkori followed. "I'll keep up!" He called out to Fumu. "I want to see how this turns out."

Bun turned to Sword and Blade. "He has _wings_?!"

"Sir Meta Knight's cape has the power of a sealed Demon Beast." Sword stated matter-of-factly.

Bun blinked. "A cape that turns into wings. Awesome."

Fumu frowned. This had to be a mistake. Alida wasn't the first person to claim Sir Meta Knight had killed someone they loved, after all.

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When the gang had arrived at the rugged terrain outside of town, the duel was still going on, just as heated as ever.

"Poyopoyo…" Kirby muttered. He wasn't too happy about this situation.

Fumu shook her head. "We have to stop this." Then, she noticed Dedede a distance away.

Bun saw him too. "Do you think he ordered another Demon Beast?"

"Let's hope so." Fumu said grimly. "That would break up this fight."

Dedede had, of course, bought another Demon Beast; this time it was a giant boar creature. Using one of Alida's swords, Sword Kirby made quick work of it.

Meta Knight, however, had used this as his cue to escape. By the time the battle was done, he was nowhere to be seen.

Alida scowled. "Coward…"

Fumu, against her better judgment, approached her. "Miss Alida, if you want, you can rest with our family tonight."

Alida's harsh look did not leave her face. "Yes. Thank you."

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Alida did not touch her food. Finally, to break the awkward silence, Fumu asked. "You said something about an usurper. What did you mean?"

"My father was the king of Kuthar. A man named Nero wanted the power for himself, so he started an uprising. Those loyal to my father held Nero's followers off, but then he hired Mennen. At first we did not know that; Mennen had came to my father saying that he heard his plight and was there to help. Then he betrayed and killed him, and Nero rose to power."

Fumu wanted to say something, but was sure that anything in Sir Meta Knight's defense would just cause trouble.

Kirby ran to the window. He smiled. "Star! Star!"

Everyone else followed him, watching as four more objects crashed down.

Suddenly, Alida was gone.

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Meta Knight sat deep in the woods. In his hand he held a dull, faded, star shaped object. A warp star. _His_ warp star. The sign of a Star Warrior.

He resisted the urge to throw it. He didn't feel much like a Star Warrior now. Not with his past catching up to him like this.

The warp star was useless anyway. It had died alongside his good friend Jecra.

Again, those words that had been troubling him for a while rang through his head.

"_Are you… happy?"_

Meta Knight sighed. "I don't know, Good King. You tell me."

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Fumu, Bun and Kirby watched from the balcony as the newcomer talked with King Dedede. The newcomer was Kutharian. And he was huge. Not in the way Dedede was, though; most of his weight had to be muscle.

Fumu figured that that had to be Nero. It would explain why Alida had vanished.

Kirby leaned over more, trying to get a better look.

"Don't do that!" Fumu warned. Too late. Kirby tumbled over the side.

Fumu ran, desperate to get to the entrance of the castle before anyone noticed Kirby. However, when she arrived, both Kirby and Nero were gone.

She turned on Dedede. "What did you do with him!?"

Dedede laughed. "My good friend Emperor Nero asked if he could borrow him for a while. He said that Kirby was 'a miracle of biology', or something like that."

Fumu gasped. Would they really do science experiments on Kirby?

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"What do we do now?" Bun asked. Tokkori fluttered nervously. He knew this wouldn't end well.

Fumu sighed. "I don't know. Sir Meta Knight is gone. Alida is gone. Kirby is gone…"

"What happened to Kirby?"

They all turned to face Meta Knight, who was now standing on the balcony.

"Well," Tokkori started, "while you were busy running away from your past, Kirby was captured for experiments by this crazy named Nero!"

Bun gave him an angry look. "Yeah, where were you? You could have helped!"

Fumu looked away. "It's all true, isn't it? About you being a mercenary?"

"Yes." Meta Knight admitted.

"You killed Alida's father in cold blood." Fumu said in a low voice.

"I was young and foolish." Meta Knight told her. "I regret the things that I had done then. But time stands still for no man."

"What about you being a Demon Beast?" Bun asked.

Meta Knight paused. "We cannot choose how we are brought into this world." Then he left.

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Sylvan looked at the pink creature. It looked back.

"Poyo?"

Sylvan blinked. "Do… do you have a name?"

"Kaabii! Kaabii!"

Sylvan hesitated. This was a test subject. It wasn't supposed to have a name. Something was unsettling about this.

"My name's Sylvan." Sylvan stated. Kirby just blinked.

"Poyo?"

Sylvan frowned. "You can't understand, can you?" He sighed. "Do you want some food?"

"Watermelon." Kirby stated.

Sylvan tilted his head. It wasn't stupid. When asked about food, it stated specifics (not that Sylvan knew what a 'watermelon' was).

Sylvan reached through the bars and patted Kirby on the head. Kirby smiled up at him.

"You're nothing but a juvenile…" Sylvan stated. "A child…" Sylvan shook his head. "And they want me to do _experiments_ on you…"

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Meta Knight quietly snuck into Sword and Blade's room. He very well knew what he was planning was crazy, but he saw no other option.

He unstrapped Galaxia's sheath, setting it next to Sword's bed. He couldn't bring it with him. He couldn't risk loosing Galaxia. He set his warp star next to it. He didn't want to loose that, either.

He thought about leaving his cape too, but that might prove to be useful. He would take it.

Silently, he took, Sword and Blade's swords. One for him, one for Kirby.

He shook his head. "This is madness…" he whispered.

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"I-I object to this!" Sylvan stuttered. "Commander Marcus, you do realize that we will be putting a child in harm's way, right? I cannot condone such tests on Kirby!"

Marcus continued to give Sylvan an even stare. "You named it."

"_He_ named it self." Sylvan spat. "And when asked about food, he stated he wanted melons of water."

Marcus closed his eyes. "Emperor Nero's word is law, Sylvan. I cannot change it."

"B-but…"

"No, Sylvan. We have to go through with this." Marcus looked Sylvan in the eyes. "Don't argue. Don't do anything stupid."

Suddenly, the alarms in the ship blared.

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Alida noticed the commotion in the hallway of the castle. It was rather hard to miss.

Fumu and Bun came out of their rooms, rubbing their eyes. "Sword Knight, what's going on?" Fumu asked sleepily.

"Sir Meta Knight is missing." Sword stated.

"Again?" Bun asked. "It's not very surprising."

"He left Galaxia in our room." Blade told her.

Fumu blinked. She had never seen Sir Meta Knight without his sword. "Why would he do that?"

"I fear he has done something rash." Sword murmured.

Alida laughed. "With any luck, he'll get himself killed."

Sword and Blade tensed. They glared at Alida.

"It would only be fitting if he died at the hand of the monster he helped to create." Alida continued.

Finally, Blade snapped. "You _will not _say another ill word against our master!" He yelled. "He may have been a mercenary at one time, but he has since changed!"

Sword stepped between them. In a dangerously low voice, he hissed. "You are so _blinded_ by the past that all you can see is the mercenary, not his true being, the Star Warrior who was willing to risk his life to save a couple of bandits who tried to rob him! You are the one at fault here, Alida. You've become the monster you swore to hunt!"

Alida snarled. "You say he is changed, that he is good, so why does he hide behind a mask? Only people with things to hide wear masks." Sword and Blade did not answer. "You've never seen under that mask, have you?"

"We do not question him on his history," Blade stated, "because we know that there are things that are difficult for him to talk about."

"Because he is a liar and a coward." Alida hissed.

"Because he is _hurt_." Sword countered. "He has lost more than you will ever know." Sword turned away. "We will go and look for him. If you wish to help, then please do so. If not, then stay out of our way."

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Kirby looked up at Meta Knight. "Poyo?" he asked.

"Listen to me Kirby; I need you to fly out of here-"

"Star! Star!" Kirby chirped.

Meta Knight shook his head. "Your warp star isn't here. I'm going to let you use my cape." He detached his shoulder armor and his cape placing it on Kirby. "You need to focus on the sky-"

Kirby tugged on Meta Knight's hand. "Poyopoyo?"

"I'll follow you from the ground." The blank stare following this statement told Meta Knight Kirby didn't get it. "Like a game of follow the leader."

"Game!"

Meta Knight nodded. "Yes. A game. And if I see you touch the ground, you lose. And if you fly all the way back to the castle, you win." He handed Kirby one of the swords. "Now, fly!"

Kirby smiled, focusing on the sky. The wings unfolded.

Meta Knight watched sadly as Kirby flew off, then turned to the Kutharian soldiers chasing them.

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Sylvan paced around uncertainly. He was shaking. Did he do the right thing?

After all, he did not have any combat skills whatsoever. It wasn't like he could have stopped Meta Knight/Mennen/Whoever from taking Kirby?

Kirby was out of here. That was good, right? But it was sure to incur Emperor Nero's wrath…

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Kirby dropped to the ground. He didn't like this game. He didn't care if he lost anymore.

He looked around. Meta Knight was supposed to have followed him. But he wasn't here.

Kirby frowned. That wasn't fair; Meta Knight switched games. He didn't want to play Hide and Seek.

Kirby toyed with the cape a bit, trying to figure out how Meta Knight did the wrapy thing. His arms didn't seem to quite reach.

He gave up, looking around again. Meta Knight sure was good at Hide and Seek…

Something else caught his attention. Something that glimmered in the light of the rising sun.

Kirby laughed. It was a shiny! He liked shiny things.

Kirby thought as he walked towards the shiny. Meta Knight seemed so sad lately. Maybe he could give Meta Knight the shiny and he would feel better. Meta Knight liked shiny things too, right? He did have a lot of them…

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Alida watched as Fumu, Bun, Sword, Blade and Tokkori looked for the missing Meta Knight.

"Hey, guys, I think I found him!" Bun called out.

Alida looked. "That's… too small to be Mennen." Like everyone else, she ran towards the figure.

Fumu gasped. "It's Kirby!"

Kirby tripped over the cape. He didn't bother to get up.

Sword was the first to get to Kirby. He helped the puffball up to his feet, but he collapsed.

"He has something in his hands." Sword told the others. He huddled back over Kirby. "What's wrong? Why are you crying?"

Kirby fumbled with the object. "Me…ta…"

Fumu patted Kirby on the head. "What happened to Sir Meta Knight?"

Kirby showed her the object, revealing it to be half of Meta Knight's mask.

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Sylvan sighed. He felt so horrible right now. Sure, Kirby had escaped, but now someone else was in his place.

He looked back into the cell and flinched under the gaze of those angry white eyes.

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Coo sat next to the sleeping Kirby. "Poor thing…"

Fumu went up to them. "Why was he so upset?" she asked.

Coo sighed. "He might be traumatized. He doesn't really understand that that was nothing more than a mask."

"You mean that he thinks it's Sir Meta Knight's face." Fumu stated. Coo nodded.

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"This is a wonderful planet." Nero stated. "There are many resources here." He turned to his two commanders. "Commander Gaius, I want you to find Kirby."

"Yes sir."

"Commander Marcus, I have a message for you to deliver to King Dedede."

"As you command."

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Kiwi: To be continued. You know, if you guys like it. And if I'm not lazy. Review please!


	2. Chapter 2

Kiwi: Aaand I'm back to using word

Kiwi: Aaand I'm back to using word. Maybe fanfiction dot net will stop screwing up my formatting.

Torio: writing websites longhand now?

Kiwi: Of course. Fanfiction dot net won't let me write them regularly. Just like it insists on underlining everything when I upload. Gah, it's so infuriating! It italicizes everything too! Which means I have to use the edit feature in order to un-italicize everything, then re-italicize emphasized words!

Torio: And you really think that word will fix things?

Kiwi: No. Well, I might as well start with the story related things. Got a couple of new fan characters in this chapter. Kind of. Bio Spark is technically cannon. He's the result of playing KSSU instead of typing fanfiction. Ami is, well, she's dead. She has almost no bearing in this plot, just one of those ideas I threw out there in case I write a "Meta Knight during the war" story. Yeah… tell me if you think it's a good idea or something…

Torio: Lets see, Kiwi was a ditz last chapter and forgot to mention Sylvan wears glasses. It's not very important, but we should mention it. Kumquat also missed all of the Roman and Latin-based names. Seriously, even if you didn't catch Alida and on the chance that Gaius is misspelled, you really should have gotten it at Marcus and Nero. And Sylvan is so obviously derived from silva. You fail, Kumquat.

Kiwi: Kumquat reviewed? Does that mean he has a computer now? Kumquat, go watch Hoshi no Kaabii! I know you haven't actually watched it!

Torio: Any other readers who are reading this using knowledge based on Right Back at Ya may want to watch the original Japanese version. It may or may not help.

Kiwi: Though only 60 something episodes are subbed, it's still worth it. A lot of the voice acting is better, most notably Sword and Blade. They're on youtube. Also, the website the subs originated from (written in longhand, sorry, replace words like backslash with actual backslashes):

http colon backslash backslash kirby dot classicgaming dot gamespy dot com

No actual spaces in there either. The subs are somewhere in the 'operation hnk' category.

Torio: Yeah. Now for the actual story.

Kiwi: More flashbacks! Woot!

Torio: Right. Kiwi doesn't own Kirby or any affiliated characters. Only the Kutharians and Ami the dead lady. Also, some swearing hints at adult themes. Just a warning.

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_"Daddy! Daddy!"_

_"Miss, we must leave!"_

_"Where's my daddy!"_

_"Sir, Nero's forces are pressing on the castle! Where is the king?"_

_"The king is dead. We've been had. That bastard was working for Nero the whole time!"_

_"Daddy!"_

Alida snapped awake. She stretched, shaking off the old memories. _And before I went into hysterics, I saw the cutter blade,_ she thought idly. 

She wandered the castle. She knew where Sword and Blade's rooms were, so logically, Mennen's should be nearby.

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_"You called my warp star."_

_"And?"_

_"They told me I didn't have one."_

_"Well… I think it was because they didn't want you to call it. Maybe they wanted you to realize that people out there actually care about you."_

_"That's ridiculous."_

_"Is it? Cut the whole loner act out, Metty. It's obnoxious."_

_"_You're_ the obnoxious one, Jecra."_

"Huh?"

"I was just saying you seem like a very lonesome creature." Sylvan repeated.

Meta Knight blinked. He stared at Sylvan.

"You know, the resemblance is striking. Are you his father?" Sylvan asked.

Meta Knight had to catch up to the conversation. "Just because we live in the same village and we are the same race does not mean he is my son."

Sylvan laughed. "Yeah, _real_ convincing argument there."

"We were both Nightmare-spawned. We don't have parents."

"Oh." Sylvan muttered. "Well, I wouldn't expect the fearsome Mennen to have a kid, anyway."

"My name is Meta Knight."

Sylvan looked at his watch. "I… it's time to test which copy abilities you can use. I'm sorry about this."

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"I bring a message from Emperor Nero, your Highness." Marcus stated, bowing. "He wishes to discuss politics with you, over a feast, of course."

Dedede laughed. "You had me at 'feast'."

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Alida looked over the quarters. She noted the jar of candy on a shelf. "Go figure." She muttered.

She wandered over to a bookshelf. A small, leather-bound, tattered book caught her eye. She picked it up and sat in the chair.

The book was not quite a journal. There were the occasional journal entries, but it was mainly filled with sketches, leaf pressings and writings on various cultures.

Alida flipped through some of those pages. Some photos fluttered out. She picked them up.

One of them was particularly interesting. It was a group photo of Mennen, a purple-skinned blond man, two pale tan women and an infant. One seemed to be the wife of the purple skinned man; she held a baby that carried a lot of resemblance to him. The other seemed to be the sister of the wife.

Alida noted something else of interest; both Mennen and the mystery man were wearing star shaped badges.

Alida sighed. In the picture, they seemed to be having a celebration of some sort. There was snow, and the house was covered in lights. She missed the solstice celebrations she had when she was a child.

She absentmindedly pocketed the picture, and then continued to flip through the pages.

One page had a sketch of a serene-looking woman. She also had a star-shaped badge. She read over the journal entry:

_I should have done something more. I can't help but feeling I could have saved her, that it didn't have to be like this. I should have stopped her from rushing to Galaxia like that. But I didn't. And now Garlude is dead._

_It's so strange, to write the words 'Garlude' and 'dead' in the same sentence. Jecra says that there was nothing else I could do, but I know that's just a white lie. He puts on a brave act, but I know that her death has affected him badly. I've seen this act of his too many times._

_I'm guessing right now, he's calling his family. Any moment could be his last, and he knows it. Yamikage seems to have, more or less, withdrawn from society. Jecra and I haven't seen him since her funeral. As far as I know, his brother is his only family._

_I really don't know what else to write. I'm still trying to wrap my head around the fact that she's dead._

Alida looked at the page. In a few of the places, the ink had smeared and bled. Had he been crying when he wrote this?

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"Poyo…" Kirby muttered sadly. He walked over to the table and picked the remains of Meta Knight's mask.

"Mask." He said, testing out the word. Fumu and the others had told him it was just a mask, not Meta Knight's face. They had said that a mask was like a hat for the face. They had said that Meta Knight was all right, and that they would find him.

Kirby wandered out to the balcony. He climbed on the wall and sat down. "Meta!" he called out, thinking the knight would come if he yelled. "Meta-poyoo!"

Kirby stopped. He heard a strange humming noise.

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Meta Knight collapsed back into his cell. He shivered. He hadn't realized that he was _that much_ out of practice with his copy abilities.

There had been a time, many of hundreds of years ago, when he could have killed a man with a _parasol_. Now he couldn't even use the Tornado ability.

He coughed a bit. He ached all over.

"Are you okay?" Sylvan asked. Meta Knight glared at him.

"You forced me to eat fire, and blew gale-force winds in my direction, and you're asking me if I'm okay."

"Right. Stupid question." Sylvan muttered. "You know, in a contest of copy abilities, I'm sure Kirby could mop the floor with you."

"Thanks." Meta Knight muttered. "As if I didn't feel bad enough already."

"You knew this would happen." Sylvan stated. "You planned on being captured."

"I didn't _plan _on being captured. I simply knew it was likely."

"Why?" Sylvan asked.

"Because he is the one who can defeat Nightmare."

Sylvan thought that over. "That's not it." He stated. "You care for him. Are you _sure_ you aren't his father."

Meta Knight glared. "For the last time, we are not related."

Sylvan laughed. "If you say so."

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"Where are you?" Nero yelled. "Ninja! Get in here!"

A purple clad ninja emerged from the shadows. "You bellowed?" He asked mockingly.

Nero growled. "I don't have time for your attitude, Bio Spark. I need you to eliminate someone."

Bio Spark stared at him evenly. "Really. I never would have guessed. Who is it this time?"

"A woman named Alida. I want her out of the way, immediately."

"And you're paying me how much?"

"We will discuss the matter of price afterwards.  
"Of course." _Just like always_, Bio Spark thought bitterly. He bowed and left. "Jackass." He hissed when he was out of hearing range. He glared at the Kutharian soldier passing by. "Well?"

"Nothing, nothing…" Marcus muttered. He continued to the Emperor's quarters as Bio Spark continued away.

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Alida picked up another picture. This one had more members of the GSA in it. There was Mennen, Garlude, the purple-skinned man, a pale orange puffball, and two ninja, one in black and one in purple.

Alida shook her head. Could it really be true that Mennen had reformed?

She flipped through some more journal pages. Another page had caught her interest. There was nothing written on it.

Mennen had tried to write something, but instead there were ink blotches everywhere, the page had torn in some areas. Something had happened here that words could not express.

She flipped through more entries, finally getting to one of the last ones. She struggled to read the handwriting. Apparently, he had been very agitated when he had written it:

_I can't take it anymore. I just can't. Everything has gone so horribly wrong. I'm all alone now. Garlude is dead, Jecra's dead, Bio Spark is gone, Yamikage, that bastard, had been a mole, Ami hates me. Everything is wrong._

_Ami won't look me in the eye. I don't blame her. She's terrified of me now. It started a couple of days ago, I was drunk, I don't remember what happened. Then she started accusing me of toying with her feelings. She was so mad. I endured the yelling and screaming, and left her on her own. On the most recent attack, I had found the Demon Beast that had taken Jecra, and I killed it. Slowly. I don't know what came over me. But Ami saw. She probably thinks I'm a Demon Beast now, and is waiting for me to turn traitor like Yamikage. I don't want to be that person again! I don't want to be like that! I'm not a Demon Beast!_

_This isn't the worst part, though. The worst part is that the entire GSA is looking up to me. They think I'm the one who's going to kill Nightmare, because I wield Galaxia. But I'm not. I know I'm not the Star Warrior destined to do that. Galaxia knows it. Sir Arthur knows it. But everyone thinks I'm going to save them. And I can't. I'm destined to fail. I just-_

Alida closed the book. She thought about the names she had read. Garlude, Jecra, Bio Spark, Yamikage, Ami. Who were they?

She opened the book to the last entry.

_The war is over. We lost. Many of the GSA members are dead. I'm one of the few, if not the only one left. Any survivors were scattered._

_I managed to get to Ami before she died. She gave me her forgiveness, and told me to never let the darkness back into my heart._

_I promise to never let the darkness back into my heart._

Alida blinked. "You've turned out to be a very strange person, Mennen."

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Kirby skidded to a halt. The strange noise was gone. Instead he saw movement up ahead. It took a while for the information to process.

"Ninja!" Kirby chirped, remembering the word. The ninja turned around and walked up to him.

"Well, aren't you the most disgustingly cute thing this side of Halfmoon." The ninja whispered, patting Kirby on the head.

"Poyo!"

"You know, you remind me of someone." The ninja stated.

"Poyoyo!" Kirby exclaimed, tilting his head.

The ninja nudged him in the other direction. "Run along now. I have work to do."

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"He won't succeed."

Nero turned around. "Ah, Yamaikage, you're here."

"You have done my master a great favor telling us where Bio Spark is, but I can't help but think that having him go after Alida is a bit… ill-planned."

Nero shrugged. "It was just to get him away from here. The longer he is in the base, the more likely he is to find out about my deal with Holy Nightmare. I'm sure that wouldn't go over well with an ex-GSA member. He's at the castle if you want to finish him off."

Yamikage nodded, slipping back into the shadows.

Nero proceeded out of his quarters; he had business at the castle anyway.

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Alida set the book back. She went to leave the room, and then stopped. She had the feeling she was being watched. She cautiously exited.

"Miss Alida!" Sword exclaimed, preparing to lecture her for going through Meta Knight's personal belongings. Alida turned and stepped forward in time for the kunai to hit the wall instead of her.

Sword and Blade drew their swords. "Show yourself!" Blade shouted.

Sword swung, and another kunai dropped out of the air.

Alida went back towards the room. This was not something she was used to. Her enemies had always been straight-forward; they didn't hide in the shadows.

Suddenly she tripped. When she looked up a kunai was being held at her throat.

"Did Nero send you, ninja?" Blade asked.

"Frankly, that's none of your concern. And my name is Bio Spark, not _ninja_."

"Bio Spark…" Alida muttered. "I've heard that name… it was in Mennen's journal."

Blade glared at her. "You went through Sir Meta Knight's personal belongings!"

Bio Spark blinked. "Wait a minute. Meta Knight is here? As in the short, antisocial Star Warrior Meta Knight."

"He was here." Sword said grudgingly. "Nero has captured him."

"Nero…" Bio Spark whispered. "That bastard!" He threw the kunai to the floor, where it stuck. "When I get my hands on him…"

Sword stopped Bio Spark's rant. "Perhaps you would be of more use if you focus your efforts on rescuing Sir Meta Knight."

Bio Spark nodded. "Right, right…"

Then they heard Kirby scream.

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Kirby ran. There was that noise again! As he turned the corner, Fumu caught him.

"Kirby, what's wrong?" She paused. "What's that noise?"

"Poypoy." Kirby muttered. Suddenly, her jerked her to the side. There was a scorch mark where the two used to be.

Fumu gazed up. There was a Kutharian soldier on some sort of hover board device. He aimed his gun at the duo again. "Stay still." He hissed. Suddenly he dropped.

"I'm afraid you're out-classed." A purple clad ninja said.

"Bio Spark, look out!" Blade shouted. The ninja sidestepped as a swarm of shuriken hit the floor.

"And _I'm_ afraid that you're still out of your league." Yamikage said.

Bio Spark didn't bother with a retort. He instead released a flurry of kunai in a vain attempt to hit the Nightmare-aligned ninja.

Sword and Blade were about ready to join in the fight, but Waddle Doo skidded past them. "The king is in danger!" He shouted on his way to the throne room.

Sword turned to Blade. "I will go help His Majesty. You protect Kirby."

Blade nodded. He turned to the Kutharian soldier.

"I will assist you." Alida told Sword, following the knight.

There was a muffled groan as Bio Spark hit the ground hard. He struggled to his feet. Blade turned from the Kutharian to Yamikage. The ninja was too fast for the knight. Blade went down quickly.

The Kutharian picked up the struggling Kirby. Fumu tried to get him, but was pistol-whipped into submission.

"Bring the girl. She will cause problems otherwise." Yamikage stated. He turned to finish off Bio Spark, but the other ninja was gone. Yamikage shrugged. He would probably die soon anyway. He turned to leave.

As soon as the two foes were gone, Bio Spark let himself drop from the ceiling. He lay there, dazed.

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"Escargon!" Dedede shouted. "Escargon, where are you!"

Sword hit a hidden switch, revealing a secret area. "Your Highness, Miss Alida, please stay here. I will go find Escargon."

They nodded weakly, and went into the darkness.

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Fumu blinked dully. She rubbed her head. "Where…" she started. She looked around. She was in some sort of cell.

"I brought you some food." A mousy looking Kutharian said. He set the food down inside the cell.

"Where is Kirby?"

The Kutharian sighed. "In another cell. He's a test subject, you're a prisoner. I with things didn't have to be like this."

"Then why don't you stop it?" Fumu shouted. "Are you really going to just sit back and let this happen?"

"But what could _I_ do."

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_"You can't do this, Bio Spark. It wasn't your fault."_

_"I should have known. By the stars, Jecra, he was my _brother_! What else can I do?"_

_"You don't have to leave. This was Yamikage's doing, not yours!"_

_"My mind is made up, and you can't change it."_

_"You're being selfish! What about _us_! Are you really just going to abandon me, Ami and Meta Knight? We need you, Bio Spark. Especially Meta Knight. You know he hasn't been quite right since Garlude's death."_

_"I'm sorry, Jecra, but I can't stay here any longer."_

_"…Are you at least going to say goodbye to them?"_

_"I'm sorry."_

Bio Spark wearily opened his eyes. He looked at the family that occupied the room. Were they that girl's family? They were all crying. He sat up. He had to rescue them: the girl, the pink 'poyo poyo' thing, Meta Knight.

But first, he needed a plan.

Bah, screw the plan. Running in with no thought whatsoever was what he did best!

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Kirby tilted his head. Right now he was very confused. There was a blue him in front of him.

Kirby leaned in close. "Kaabii!" He chirped, poking the blue Kirby-thing. There was a movement. Kirby laughed. "Kaabii! Kaabii!" He leaned in closer.

Suddenly, the blue one woke up. "Gah!"

It was silent enough to hear the thoughts click through Kirby's head. "Meta?" he asked. Suddenly, he hugged the unmasked knight. "Meta! Meta!"

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The secret door opened. Alida and Dedede blinked, having to adjust to the light. On the other side, there was a sobbing Escargon, surrounded by Kutharian soldiers.

"I'm sorry, Your Majesty, b-but Nero said h-he'd… he'd kill my mother if I didn't!"

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Coo flew. Threatening someone's mother, that was a low blow. And Coo knew just what mama bird would also believe so…

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"Marcus, report." Nero demanded.

"Both Star Warriors are in our custody, the king and the exile have been captured, and Bio Spark is injured, but in hiding."

Nero laughed. "Well, two out of three is good. Let's make the execution of Dedede and Alida public. That way we can show these oafs what happens if they decide to defy me."

"Yes sir." Marcus said. He already knew what happened if you defied the Emperor.

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KiWi: Ugh. Chapter 2 done. The next part will be whenever I get it done.

Review please


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